With the T20 World Cup just over two months away, England have plenty of questions they need to answer before their campaign gets underway.
Since being knocked out of last year's World Cup by New Zealand in the semi-finals, England have lost every T20I series they have played, losing three on the bounce against the West Indies, India and South Africa for the first time ever.
They have a new coach and captain at the helm and have been missing a number of big stars through injury, while there are concerns over the form of several others. Following on from a disappointing end to England's white-ball summer, Mirror Sport has taken a look at five issues England need to address before the World Cup begins in October.
Time for Mott and Buttler to gel
After being appointed as England's white-ball coach in May, Matthew Mott took charge of the side for the first time as they beat the Netherlands 3-0 in Anmstelveen. Captain Eoin Morgan, who spearheaded England's white-ball revolution, then announced his surprise retirement on June 28, with Jos Buttler confirmed as his replacement two days later.
Mott and Buttler then had just seven days before a busy run of 12 games in just 25 days which has not given them a chance to make their mark on the side and that is something they will have to find time for ahead of the World Cup. "There's no getting past the fact that the schedule makes it tough," Buttler admitted.
"It's also a frustration of mine we don't have any training days. Those training days are really important for that team cohesion, the energy within the group, the fielding drills and the camaraderie around the guys without the pressures of a game.
"A lot of the time around training is when you can do some of your best work, being able to have good conversations and having a feel for where the group is at and not just always being in game mode. To get the highest standard of cricket possible, you need to prepare properly. Hopefully, that's something we can look at going forward."
Roy's diminishing returns
Although many of England's batters struggled this summer, none experienced quite the drop off in form that Roy did. In six T20Is, Jason Roy has managed just 76 runs from 98 balls, with his lack of fluency a real concern.
He managed to score at more than a run a ball in just one innings, a 26-ball 27 against India at Trent Bridge, and is under immense pressure with plenty of competition at the top of the order. Phil Salt is waiting in the wings and has earned comparisons to Roy in the past, while Jonny Bairstow could easily be promoted to open as he does in ODI cricket.
Roy does retain the full backing of England given his previous exploits, but he is in desperate need of a score to prove he still deserves his place in the side.
Reliance on Rashid
The leg-spinner has been a potent weapon for England's white-ball sides over the years, particularly with his wicket-taking abilities in the middle overs. However, England particularly struggled in the middle this summer, taking just 14 wickets in six T20Is and going at more than 10 runs an over in that period.
Adil Rashid was a huge miss in the India series when he was completing the Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca and underwhelming on his return against South Africa, picking up just two wickets across the series.
England have also been lacking quality pace options, with the likes of Jofra Archer, Mark Wood, Olly Stone and Saqib Mahmood all out of action. Richard Gleeson impressed on debut against India but has been expensive since, while Reece Topley and David Willey have been at their best with the new ball and Chris Jordan remains England's death overs specialist.
However, if England are to win the World Cup, they will need to find a way to take more wickets in those middle overs and they cannot simply rely on Rashid.
Livingstone's best role
Across six T20Is this summer, Liam Livingstone has batted in four different positions and managed 83 runs at an average of 16.60 and a strike rate of 133.87, passing 20 just once. It is a sign that England's thinking has become a bit muddled when it comes to the player who was last year's breakout prospect.
Livingstone has been at his best for England as a big hitting finisher, who hit boundaries from ball one, but he has also excelled batting higher up the order in domestic cricket and showed how destructive he could be with more time at the crease when he blasted a record 42-ball hundred against Pakistan.
And England looked to give him more responsibility in the T20I series against India by twice promoting him to number four with Bairstow rested. However, he struggled and was dismissed in the powerplay on both occasions as England's top order also let them down.
It seems clear Livingstone should be moved back down the order by England, but he also needs those coming in ahead of him to fire if he is to be at his best come the World Cup.
Stokes' return
As one of the best all-rounders in the world, Ben Stokes will undoubtedly be part of England's side at the upcoming World Cup, particularly following his retirement from ODI cricket.
However, he does not yet have a clearly defined role in this batting line-up and has not played a T20I since March 2021. He has batted most often for England at number six, doing so on 11 occasions and scoring 109 runs at an underwhelming average and strike rate of 10.90 and 126.74.
However, his game is better suited to batting higher up the order in T20 cricket and England need to figure out what they want from him before the World Cup begins in October.
